I'll Make a Reader Out of You
by That-Awesome-Chick
Summary: What if Belle was to read a book about a girl who joined the army and saved China? What would Gaston think about the book? You'll just have to read this One-Shot to find out!


_**Hello everyone!**_

_**So I'm in this RPG on this awesome Beauty and the Beast forum(link's on my profile page, you should check it out) and I am playing Mulan. Let's just say Mulan and Gaston have some uh, differences about some things. So an idea popped into my head and here it is! **_

_**Disclaimer: Yadda Yadda… You've read it before. I don't own any of the characters.**_

It was just another normal, boring day for Belle. She had gotten up and went to town to do some errands. She had to go to the bakers and get fresh bread, the butcher shop for more meat, the market to pick up eggs and milk, she also had to visit the seamstress's to get a couple of her dresses mended, and her father had asked her to stop by the tool shop to pick up a tool he had ordered. It was a lot to do, but she still made time to visit the book shop and say Hello to Monsieur Liseur.

When Belle walked into the bookshop Monsieur Liseur seemed to be organizing the bookshelves.

"Bonjour Monsieur Liseur. How are you today?"

The owner of the book shop was busy organizing a new shipment of books that had come in when he heard the door open. He could only guess that it was his best customer.

"Bonjour Belle. Business could be a bit better, but other than that I'm fine. Have you come to borrow another book already?"

"No no," Belle replied "I'm still in the middle of the book I borrowed yesterday. Even I can't read that fast. Actually I just wanted to come by and say thank you for recommending that book to me. It's a wonderful book, much different from the usual fairytales I read."

The book seller smiled, happy that Belle had enjoyed his recommendation.

"I thought you'd enjoy reading Mulan. Yes, it is rather different from what you normally like to read. I don't think Mulan is even considered a fairy tale, but it still is a fascinating read. Which part of the book are you on right now?"

"I had just gotten to the part where General Shang had told Mulan to leave the army and go back home, but instead she decides to stay and prove that she is capable of being there. I think I remember something about her trying to climb that pole from earlier on in the book. I had to start my errands so I didn't have time to finish the chapter."

"Ah yes, that part. I think that is one my favorite parts in the book, the whole scene is just so inspirational."

"What do you mean?" Belle asked, confused.

"Oops, I guess I'm getting a little ahead from where you are," The bookseller chuckled. "You'll find out soon enough. Now why don't you go back home and finish the book. Then later if you'd like you can come back to the shop to discuss it with me. I'd love to hear your thoughts about it, as I always do."

"Alright. And as soon as I'm done I'll come back to discuss it with you! This is actually turning out to be one of my favorite books. I can't wait to see how it ends."

"Au Revior Belle. Oh, and before I forget there's another book that I've recently read that you must read later. It's called _The Hunchback of Notre Dame_. It's a very riveting book I must say."

"If you think I'll like it then I'm sure I'll love it. Au Revior Monsieur Liseur."

And with that Belle left the bookshop eager to return home to find out what happened next in the book. She would've started reading on the walk home, but she had to leave it at because there wouldn't be any room in the basket to carry it. She was about to leave the town square when a voice she knew all too well interrupted her thoughts.

"Why hello Belle. Fancy meeting you here," boomed the voice that belonged to none other than Gaston.

"Bonjour Gaston. How are you today?"

It may have been rude to think it, but Belle didn't care about Gaston at the moment or how his day was.

_I'm sure it was probably fine and he'll just go on about how he hunted down a pack of wolves or something. I just really want to finish reading my book. I wonder what the _Monsieur Liseur _meant by 'an inspirational scene'. _

"I'm fantastic! Actually I was just in the forest and ran into some wolves, but I single-handedly took them all down. How about you come back to the tavern with me and then I can fill you in on the details?"

"No thank you Gaston. I really need to go home and finish the book I'm reading. I'm at a very climactic point in the story."

_That's it, _Gaston thought to himself, _Why is she always so concerned about those books of hers? I bet no one in that book is as handsome or as brave as me. Not even a character someone could make up can be better than myself. Belle really should pay more attention to me. I'm her dream come true. So how come she always ignores me for those stupid books of hers, I mean why is this book so special? Well, I can't take it anymore so I'm going to get to the bottom of this!_

"Belle," Gaston said. "Why is that thing so interesting to you? Why would you rather read that boring old book instead of talking to me? No one in that book is probably as interesting or brave as I am. If you come back to the tavern with me I can tell you about my meeting with the wolves today and you'll probably like my real life story better than that boring made up book you're reading."

"Actually Gaston I beg to differ. The heroine of my book is actually quite brave and she is also a fascinating character."

Gaston was shocked that Belle could think that someone was better than he was.

"Come on Belle, you said it was a girl and how brave can a girl be? What's so interesting about her?"

"Well this story is about a girl named Mulan. A group of warriors called the Huns were attacking China, so a man from every family had to be enlisted for the army. Mulan's father, the only man in the house, was badly injured in another battle and she knew that he would not survive this one. So Mulan took her father's place in the army to save his life. But to do that she had to pretend to be a man because if a woman were to join the army the penalty would be death. Basically the book is about her struggles in the army and how she defeats Shan Yu and his army. In the end she saves the Emperor and all of China."

Belle tried to keep her summary short and simple.

_Usually if I start talking about books Gaston just doesn't listen. Then he tries to go off into some speech about girls and why they shouldn't read. Hopefully he'll listen this time. It really is an interesting read. _

"Yeah, like that could ever really happen," Gaston Scoffed "A girl's not strong enough to defeat a whole army. That' just crazy. That book has to be fake. Maybe there's a typo or something."

"Actually Mulan was based off of a true story. It really did happen. I know it's a little shocking to think one person can defeat an entire army, but it did happen."

"Okay, let's say someone was able to defeat an entire army. There's no way a girl could do it. Fighting is a man's job. It's the woman's job to stay home and cook and take care of the household."

Belle was starting to get angry now and her voice raised ever so slightly.

"You know, women are more capable than that. We have minds of our own and we're determined. We don't have to be destined to a life of being a simple housewife! And Mulan proves that fact" she retorted with spite in her voice.

Gaston was about to counter Belle's statement, but then a thought occurred to him. _Eventually Belle will have give into me and my manly charm and agree to marry me. Then I can rid her mind of all that crazy talk about women being independent and not having to cook or clean. Sooner or later she'll see it my way. Right now it looks like she's getting mad though, I don't know why. Oh well, it's best to end the conversation now before she get's really upset. I can't have my bride to be being mad at me now can I? I'll just agree with her now and let her get all this 'thinking' nonsense out her system while she can._

"Well, whatever you say Belle. I still don't think anyone would be able to defeat an entire army, but then again it's just a book. Just to let you know though, if I was there I would've defeated them all without a scratch on me. After all, no one defeats armies like Gaston."

Bell rolled her eyes, "Of course Gaston….I'm sorry but I really do have to go now. I have other chores to do and it's starting to get late," She lied. "Au Revior."

After that she turned around and rolled her eyes in disgust of how irritating he could be sometimes.

"Au Revior Belle," Gaston said as he looked longingly at her as she walked away.

_Now that's more like it. Going home to do her chores, just as she should. Maybe I'm already starting to get to her and getting those ridiculous ideas out of her head. I mean seriously, a girl in the army? And she could actually beat a man? That's just crazy, who writes that stuff! If Mulan __**was**__ real, which I doubt, she must've been one crazy girl to think that she would be able to do something a man can do._

And with that last thought Gaston walked off to the tavern to share his exciting wolf hunting story with someone who would actually listen.

After a busy morning Belle was finally home. "The chores can wait for later," She said as she looked around the messy house. "Right now I really want to finish reading Mulan."

Since it was such a lovely spring day Belle decided to go outside and read. She found a nice, soft hill to lay on where she would be comfortable. She sat there enraptured by the book. Consuming page after page and digesting every word the author had written. Before long she was done with the book. She decided to sit there a few minutes and think about what she had just read.

"Well, now I know what Monsieur Liseur meant by 'A very inspirational scene'. Mulan is such a strong character and she never gives up. She's also caring too. She could've just left Shang and the others by themselves to try and defeat Shan Yu. At the time I wouldn't blame her. Nobody believed her and nobody cared, and just because she was a woman. But she didn't desert them. She went back to helped them and ultimately became the savior of China."

Belle sighed. "That must have been an exciting journey for her to go through. A new place, a new identity, and a challenge she had to face. I wish I could go on an adventure like Mulan. Not like joining an army, but an adventure none the less. Now that I think about it Mulan and I are kind of alike. We're both outcasts that don't fit in. At least in her story she gets a happy ending. I wonder if I'll ever find mine…."

_**Well, what'd you think? I'd really appreciate it if you'd review and tell me what you thought. Or if you see any grammatical errors please point them out so I can fix them! **_

_**Oh, speaking of grammatical errors I made a huge one in the beginning of the story. **_

_**In the first paragraph I accidentally misspelled butchers, bi***es**_

_**Ha-ha Just something I found amusing. **_

_**I hope you enjoyed it! **_**J**


End file.
